PENDA SARR

A discussion on love

1:15:00 PM

Happy Valentine's day! I hope you all have a day filled with nothing but love, happiness and this type of mood: To be honest, I fi...

Happy Valentine's day! I hope you all have a day filled with nothing but love, happiness and this type of mood:

To be honest, I find love to be one of the hardest emotions to describe. It has a different meaning for each one of us, and I think that's what makes it even more beautiful. Even before today, the word has been on my mind lately. I guess it might be due to the fact that I've been listening to lots of smooth and slow 90s r&b songs haha? I've recently started writing in my journal again and today, I just scribbled some words that I thought related to the term, so I'm going to properly organize my thoughts on this blogpost.

Tough-love:

By definition(yes, I went on wikipedia for this), tough love signifies the promotion of a person's welfare by enforcing certain constraints on them or requiring them to take responsibility for their actions. I come from a place where tough-love is instilled in our culture. Looking back on it, I now realize that I was (and still am) surrounded by some of the strongest women, notably my mother, aunts and grandmothers as well as other non-maternal figures who also seem to have had this "tough" love upbringing. My family and closest friends always showed this type of love towards me, and even though at the time I hated it, I now understand and am extremely grateful to them for doing that. I think it's helped shape me into the resilient and intuitive woman I am today. But here's the thing, I am well aware that this type of love doesn't work for everyone. I guess it was fine with me because I'm the oldest of my siblings so I always had to "endure" and be the setting example.

Friendships:

I think after our relationships with our families, the ones with our friends are the most important. I find it crazy how being around certain people can affect who you are and the things you do. I've also noticed that as time goes by, you'll come to realize that the love you have for certain friends will fade, and that's ok. People tend to equate love to how much you endure or stick out with someone because you have "history" with that person or because "you've been through a lot". As Nina Simone once said: "you have to learn to leave the table when love is no longer being served".
I'm not going to lie, I've been through experiences like that in my teenage years. However, it was once I came to university that I realized it was alright to outgrow certain people because at the end of the day, what's best for me is what matters the most.

And then on the other hand, you have the strong friendships which are characterized by mutual respect, support, and trust, amongst other things. Hold on tight to these type of people; it's rare to find gems like that. Great friendships will contribute to your personal growth and happiness. It's so important to find people who are always there for you, through the good times and bad times as well.

Self-love:

Out of every type of love, I think this is the most important. Self-love signifies giving love, care, and attention to ourselves. I really think this is one of the best ways to experience happiness. Because, at the end of the day, you can't rely on other people to make you happy. The first person to love before anyone else is yourself. This will set the foundation for your other relationships, whether they be for a family member, friend or significant partner. Think about it this way: you can't properly give to someone what you don't have and vice-versa. Admittedly, this is one of the hardest loves to practice because it really has to do with affirming who you really are and being at ease with that.

Love

Like I said at the beginning of this post, the definition of love is different for everybody. When I think of love, I think of care, unconditionality, affection, happiness. I also find that the emotion usually motivates or inspires you to be the best you can be for yourself and your significant other. I don't know, it's really one of those abstract things you can't really describe but rather feel(ok cliché I know).

In relation to this post, I will say this: I love Toronto's diverse streets, fashion, and taking pictures.
This look was actually inspired by a photo I saw on Tumblr a while ago. I didn't want to copy the exact outfit so I decided to make a debut with...flare pants! Honestly, I think the last time I wore this type of style was about the age of 9. I hated them before but for some reason, this is no longer the case.

The pants were paired with a grey turtleneck, patent boots and one of my favorite mini-purses by Chanel. Whilst trying out the outfit, I did find it a little too plain for my liking, so I added a wool coat to complete the look. Like I said earlier, I absolutely love Toronto's streets. It's definitely fun to plan out these shoots because you scope out possible locations and always end up finding hidden corners.

Also, overtime, I've come to realize that doing photoshoots has helped boost my confidence. Honestly haha, there was a time when I wouldn't dare pose in front of lots of people occasionally gazing at me, but I guess the creation of the blog helped with that. It's allowed me to express myself by incorporating creative direction, art and style. A few days before a shoot, I grab my notebook and write down the looks, locations and props I want to use with my poses. Of course, sometimes I switch things up a bit, like here, when I decided to pose on a pole(let's just call it that, for lack of a better word).

I also wanted to play around with the backdrops around me:

The last few shots are my favorite because of how crisp the contrast between my outfit and the bright colors in the background are. It's always lovely shooting in Toronto!

Thank you for reading! Wishing you and your loved ones a beautiful day.

With love,

Penda

Outfit details:

Turtleneck & pants: Zara

Coat: ASOS

Bag: Chanel

Get the look!

Turtleneck:

http://www.zara.com/ca/en/woman/t-shirts/view-all/ribbed-funnel-neck-top-c719014p4208616.html

Pants:

http://www.zara.com/ca/en/woman/trousers/high-rise-flared-trousers-c358005p4333550.html

Coat:

http://www.asos.com/neon-rose/neon-rose-relaxed-tuxedo-duster-coat/prd/6944818?iid=6944818&clr=Black&SearchQuery=black%20duster%20coat&pgesize=21&pge=0&totalstyles=21&gridsize=3&gridrow=2&gridcolumn=3

Connect with me:

Instagram: @pendasarr
Snapchat: @pendouchi

Reflections

5:53:00 PM

Hello hello and happy new year! I hope you are all enjoying your time with your loved ones and entered 2017 feeling better than ever. As w...

Hello hello and happy new year! I hope you are all enjoying your time with your loved ones and entered 2017 feeling better than ever.

As we are officially in January, I thought it would be nice to reflect on my year and then talk a bit about my look for this post. If I could describe 2016 in one word, I think it would be "rollercoaster". There were ups and downs but overall, it was a really good year. Here are my personal reflections:

1) Letting go:

One of the first hard lessons I learned this year, was that letting go is not always a bad thing. Admittedly, it is something hard to do but if you recognize that something or someone is toxic for you and isn't contributing to your growth or happiness, then it's time to distance yourself. Negative vibes can bring you down, so it's important to take that step back and realize when you're around the wrong type of energy.

2) Me, myself and I:

2016 was definitely the year of "me". I learned how to make time for myself, practice self-love, self-care and surround myself with positive people. Little by little, I realized that it was okay to be selfish and isolate myself sometimes. Of course, I was still very social, but I had " me days", which I think made me even happier and more comfortable with myself.

3) Accept what I can't change:

Like everyone else, I went through experiences, both good and bad. However, I came to realize that everything happens for a reason and that overthinking or trying to fix every little issue isn't always the way to go. I stopped stressing myself as I understood that there are things I won't be able to change. And that's ok.

4) Making different types of friends:

As I said earlier in the post, I met some great people this year, whether they be my friends or my friends in the fashion industry. I remember watching a talk by my aunt and one thing that clicked to me in her video was when she said how important it is to have a variety of friends. Having friends with different passions, backgrounds and mindsets definitely made my 2016 that much better. I have learned so many things from all of them and I'm grateful as they all contributed to my personal growth.

5) Fashion:

My interest in fashion began in 2015 but I think this time was where I realized I really, really like it. My style has definitely become a tool for me to express myself creatively; this was a year where I stepped out of my comfort zone and experimented with all types of clothing and accessories. I can't tell you how many hours I spent in the day reading fashion articles, making style boards or watching runway shows on my computer haha.

And so, for this year's last post, I found it fitting to choose black and white as those were the two colors I wore the most this in 2016. This outfit was more on the elegant and chic spectrum; I wore a lace black top with an open back, and paired it with wide-legged palazzo pants and black pumps.

My favorite part of the look would definitely have to be my emerald and gold earrings. Out of every accessory I own, this pair is the most unique to me. The best thing about them is that I found them while thrifting at a store in downtown Toronto. It was always hard to find a look to accessorize them with, so imagine how happy I was when I noticed that it would look good with this particular outfit!

To stay within the minimalistic and simple theme, the photographer and I shot behind a beautiful building on my university's campus. It was really quiet that day, so we had the whole location to ourselves. Of course, it was freezing but I had to endure to get the good shots haha. Here are more pictures of the look below:

2016 was an amazing year. I am grateful for everything it has taught me, the opportunities it brought me, and the relationships I strengthened(old friends) and developed(new friends). I also want to thank you guys for keeping up with my blog for yet another year.

I am confident that 2017 will be equally as great. In terms of my resolutions(we always need those haha), I hope to keep growing as a person and work even harder towards achieving my dreams.

Thank you for reading! See you soon for another post.

With love,

Penda

Outfit details:

Top: Urban Outfitters

Pants: Missguided

Shoes: Zara

Earrings: Thrifted

Get the look!

Top:

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=40463549&category=SEARCH+RESULTS

Pants:

https://www.missguided.eu/pleated-wide-leg-trousers-white

Shoes:

http://www.zara.com/us/en/sale/woman/shoes/leather/embossed-leather-high-heel-shoes-c792117p3610306.html

Earrings:

Connect with me:

Instagram: @pendasarr
Snapchat: @pendouchi

Powder Pink

4:20:00 PM

Hey hey :) ! It's been a while but I'm back with a new fashion post! If you haven't already, check out my last beauty post here ...

Hey hey :) ! It's been a while but I'm back with a new fashion post! If you haven't already, check out my last beauty post here : http://www.pendasarr.com/2016/11/how-to-reduce-dark-spots-and-acne-scars.html.

One thing that I love about Toronto is that every corner has something special. I always pay attention to my surroundings because they help me with my photo ideas. The location for this shoot is actually a building I pass by on my way to class everyday . It was only a couple of weeks ago that I realized how its colors and overall architecture were actually very simple and minimalistic, just like my style.

So, after noticing how neat of a place it was, I scoped out the location and brainstormed outfit ideas. I don't know if I'm the only one who does this, but I like to envision potential looks when I'm in a place, just to see how it would fit in. I blame that on my obsession with Polyvore but we can talk about that in another post.

For this look, I wanted something monochromatic and simple, with just a dash of color. To stay within the "autumn/winter" theme, I chose to wear semi-mesh black culottes, paired with a light wool turtleneck, and bejeweled gold earrings and rings.

My favorite part of the outfit is of course, my powder pink heeled flats. I saw these whilst shopping at Zara(because yes it's my my 2nd home) and I just had to buy them! I love the suede texture of the shoes and the glossy heel, it's a cool style. It also helps that they're super comfortable to walk around in. Zara has other models too, these just stood out to me because of their unique color.

Also, I feel like I need to point out how cold it was that day haha. I seriously think it was like -20 degrees, but I really wanted to capture this look before I left for the holidays so I was like "ok, you're just going to have to endure, the final results will be worth it". And that, they were. I'm really happy with the outcome of the pictures ; I wanted to show how an all-black outfit and a colorful shoe can elevate a look. My neighbor's building was also the perfect backdrop, the scenery frames the outfit well, like in these photos below:

We were also lucky because that specific location had an array of buildings around it, so the photographer (https://www.instagram.com/abala_inc/) and I got to play with angles :

With that being said, I think I'm going to try and create some more looks with heeled-flats. They are my newfound obsession and I want to experiment with them.